Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients experience impaired response inhibition. Little is known about the relationship between response inhibition abnormalities and distinct PTSD symptom clusters. This study investigated the relationship between response inhibition processing and a five-factor model of posttraumatic stress symptomatology in adolescents. The event-related potentials of 54...

In examining predictors of posttraumatic stress, researchers have focused on trauma intensity and devoted less attention to other variables. This study examined how personality and demographic variables are related to the likelihood of experiencing a trauma, and to the severity of posttraumatic symptoms in a sample of 402 college students reporting a wide range of trauma. Elevations in antisoci...

This study used a sentence completion task to assess semantic choice in combat veterans. Twenty-eight combat veterans with (n=14) and without (n=14) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) filled in the final word for 33 incomplete sentences after receiving a combat prime. The veterans with PTSD completed sentences with significantly more trauma-relevant final words than those without PTSD. Findin...

This study investigated the targets of anger that are most strongly involved in posttraumatic anger. Using a sample of 218 crime victims, the authors assessed the levels of anger at potential targets (perpetrator, criminal justice system, third persons, and the self) and their association with severity of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. The results revealed that anger was most st...

A 48 year old woman was kidnapped, tortured and raped by her former boy-friend and consequently developed posttraumatic stress disorder. A combined SSRI and behaviour therapy showed only limited improvement of the relevant symptoms. On adding olanzapine to the drug regime there was complete remission of all symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)(German J Psychiatry 2007;10:50-52).

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to prospectively examine the relationship between immediate and short-term responses to a trauma and the subsequent development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHOD All patients consecutively admitted to a general hospital were screened for the presence of physical injury due to a traumatic event. Fifty-one eligible subjects were assessed 1 week ...

This study examined relationships among demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables in adult children of cancer patients. Two hundred and fourteen participants completed measures of posttraumatic growth (PTG), distress, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, social support, and family functioning. Significant gender differences in all PTG dimensions were found, as well as associat...

The need for addressing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among combat veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq is a growing public health concern. Current PTSD management addresses psychiatric parameters of this condition. However, PTSD is not simply a psychiatric disorder. Traumatic stress increases the risk for inflammation-related somatic diseases and early mortality. The metabolic s...

BACKGROUND Prior research has connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to increased levels of catecholamines. However, studies of cortisol levels have produced mixed results. OBJECTIVE To examine urinary catecholamine and cortisol levels in individuals with PTSD in a community sample. DESIGN A representative cohort of young adult community residents, assessed periodically during a 10-...

BACKGROUND The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)-Criteria A1 and A2 for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been discussed extensively, with several studies in adults or adolescents supporting the removal of Criterion A2. However, solid research in children is missing. OBJECTIVE This study evaluated the DSM-Criteria A1 and A2 in predicting posttraumatic stress ...